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Saturday, 21 February 2015

My parents converted a little space in our living rooms for me to have a place to sew! I'm really happy, as I'm really into sewing at the moment. Hopefully I'll have more time to sew soon.

Oh, and here's a sneak peak of my Elizabeth Rose Lolita skirt!

It's not quite complete as we need to clear out the drawers for patterns and fabrics, etc, and it's not exactly Lolita styled - but I do think it has a retro feel somehow with the colours - yet I love it.

By the way, I saw the third episode of the Great British Sewing Bee programme, which is 50s week, and I'm in love with these 50s dresses! This gives me a lot of inspiration.

Finally, I've decided to take some Pullip photos again, this time with my latest addition to the doll family, Audrey!

My family and I went to the Maritime Museum at Liverpool's Albert dock. The museum was more of a serious place to be, as it was all about World Wars, Titanic and slavery, so I guess I wanted my photo edits to be less bright and cheery to match those dreadful things.

I was actually planning on taking some photos of her at the docks, but it was soooo bitterly cold that none of my family could stand it. We went to both museums on the dock as well, as my father wanted to see his martial arts teacher at the Chinese display.

Monday, 16 February 2015

Did anyone else get a huge surprise on the Baby website recently? I was really stunned to see a collaboration like this, especially with the glamorous, almost sexy image Barbie represents (at least recently, but maybe not so much in the 50s). To see her decked from head to (almost) toe in ruffles and frills is really refreshing, especially for us Lolita girls!

I would have loved to own this as a young girl, as I was such a Barbie fan back then - until I shaved all their heads for some reason long forgotten - and to be honest I'd still be proud to have it in my doll collection now.

Sunday, 15 February 2015

Finally, the National Trust is open again! I was at a complete loose end without some massive beautiful manor and garden to walk around and imagine I live there, so now it has opened on the 14th February I'm happy again.

Dunham Massey was a manor house owned by the aristocracy that was turned into a semi-hospital for injured and ill soldiers during World War One. Live actors perform there, acting out the parts of soldiers with shell shock (very disturbing, needless to say) and nurses. I had an amazing time seeing the house and hospital, as well as the garden with the new snowdrops - which smell gorgeous, by the way. The house actually reminds me a lot of Jeeves and Wooster for some reason!

Friday, 13 February 2015

Apparitions: Ghosts of Old Edo by Miyuki Miyabe is described by goodreads as:

"In old Edo, the past was
never forgotten. It lived alongside the present, in dark corners, and in
the shadows. In these tales, award-winning author Miyuki Miyabe
explores the ghosts of Japan, and the spaces of the living world they
inhabit. Written with a journalistic eye and a fantasist’s heart
Apparitions bring the restless dead, and those who encounter them, to
life."

As the blurb can most likely tell you, the book is full of intrigue and suspense, so much that I couldn't put it down for a minute! It ranges from mildly creepy ghost stories to extreme horror, yet all of the stories are captivating, making you want to read more and more. All of the scenes are elaborately described in an eloquent style, enabling the reader to get a clear picture of old Japanese life, even if they know hardly anything of the history or culture back then. It even taught me an awful lot about the belief in ghosts and superstition in those times (my guess is that it's extremely well-researched), such as the 49 day wait for the spirit of a departed one to leave the earth.

A lot of the stories were written about the masters and mistresses of the shops, as well as their working class workers that lead fairly miserable lives. The stories reek of death and despair, and touches heavily upon the themes of domestic servitude, apprenticeship and squalor.

My favourite short story was called "A Woman's Head" as it was the most intense story of all, in my opinion. There were many more that I loved, but this one stood out to me as it was from a young boy's point of view, as opposed to an adult's.

About Me

Hi! My name's Ellie. I'm 18 and live in Britain. I'm an author of historical and LGBT fiction, such as "When the Summer Ends" and "Mansions of Glass", which you can find on Amazon. I'm also very interested in sewing and costume design, and would like to start filming at some point.